published_or_final_version / Psychology / Master / Master of Social Sciences

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This study investigated the relationship between career indecision and family dynamics among matriculants. The sample was drawn from two high schools in, an African township. The Olson Circumplex model of Marital and Family Systems was applied to test various types of family relations and how they would influence career decisiveness. Career indecision is, therefore, the independent variable with the two dimensions of family relations (cohesion and adaptability) as given in the model as primary predictor variables. Other variables that were tested were exposure to career information as determined by the differences between the two schools, and gender differences. ,The My vocational Situation (MVS), the Career Decision Scale (CDS) and the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scale III (FACES III) were used as instruments of measurement. Multiple regression and multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) were used as methods of statistical analysis. Significant differences were found between subjects from the two ·schools. Findings indicate that exposure to career information is a strong determinant of career decisiveness. It was also found that career identity is highly correlated with career decisiveness. Differences were also found between male and female participants particularly in the measures of career indecision, career identity and occupational information, with boys being more decisive than girls. Family adaptability was demonstrated to have a weak correlation with career indecision while no statistically significant relationship was demonstrated between family cohesion and career indecision. Recommendations in this study are that career counselling in the schools needs to be introduced and intensified. Career information given to pupils should also be integrated for them to assist them achieve career identity. Research has demonstrated that there is a strong relationship between career development and family dynamics. Results of this study~ however, demonstrate a weak relationship. This brings up questions about the Circumplex 'model applied in this study and the FACES III as an instrument used to test it. Further research is recommended in this area. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 1997.

Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Health Sciences at The Durban University of Technology in partial compliance with the requirements for a Master's Degree in Technology: Chiropractic, 2008. / Objective: To determine the current knowledge and perceptions of biokineticists with respect to the chiropractic profession in South Africa. Design: A descriptive design was utilized in a qualitative questionnaire in order to evaluate, in a structured manner, the knowledge and perceptions of biokineticists with respect to Chiropractic. Subjects: The total population size used in the study was 657 (response rate n=78; 11.87%). Outcome Measures: These were based on a questionnaire which addressed biokineticists knowledge of Chiropractic, interaction with Chiropractic, Chiropractic terminology and scope of Chiropractic practice. Results: Of the 657 questionnaires that were mailed, only 78 questionnaires were returned and this gave a response rate of 11.87%. The most frequent view or attitude towards chiropractic was that it had a valuable role in the health care system (64%). About 50% of the respondents believed chiropractors to be greatly competent in examination and diagnosis whilst 40% felt that chiropractors were moderately competent in examination and diagnosis. Nevertheless, the rate of communication between biokineticists and chiropractors was found to be quite high, in this study. All together, 67% of biokineticists had communicated with chiropractors. Of those that had communicated, the communication was rated as positive (94.4%). Of those who had referred patients to chiropractors, 41.8% had received treatment feedback reports and of those who had received reports, 68.8% said they were concise and valuable. Conclusion: The results of this study show that the mean knowledge score was 60%. Thus the overall knowledge of chiropractic was high. The only factor that significantly affected respondents’ knowledge was their self reported knowledge of chiropractic. In congruence with this, the most common attitude towards chiropractic was that it had a valuable role to play in the health care system (64%).

Although interest inventories have a long history in the field of career counseling, vocational interests have received limited attention in Industrial-Organizational (I-O) psychology. To assess the potential utility of interest inventories in the field of I-O psychology, 82 I-O psychologists with expertise in employee selection and equal employment opportunity law completed a survey assessing their expert opinion on the utility of interest inventories for employee selection decisions. Opinion on potential legal liability and discriminatory impact of the use of interest inventories was also assessed. Hypothesis 1, which stated a majority of respondents would indicate they have little to moderate knowledge of vocational interests, was supported. Hypothesis 2, which stated a majority of respondents would indicate agreement that interest inventories can be used for employee selection, was not supported. Hypothesis 3, which stated a majority of respondents would indicate agreement that more research into interest inventories is warranted, was supported. Hypothesis 4, which stated majority of respondents would indicate that the use of interest inventories would likely lead to legal liability for the employer, was not supported. Additional analyses were run to investigate other relationships of interest. Results of additional analyses indicated that participants indicated that interest inventories could be utilized in positive selection contexts as interest inventories likely may have incremental validity over traditional selection instruments. However, experts did not expect utility for interest inventories in negative selection contexts. Consequently, the results of this study indicate interest inventories likely have an array of useful applications in I-O psychology. Further research is warranted to determine which of these applications will provide utility and whether or not selection contexts will prove to be among those applications. Additional implications and limitations of findings are discussed, and directions for future research are considered.

Since the 1970s, several researchers have questioned the applicability of theories of career development based on research with White males to women, minority group members, andindividuals from low socioeconomic milieus. This study examined the validity of D.E. Super's theory of career development in an underresearched subject population, African-American male and female university students. A conceptual model of career maturity composed of determinants derived from Super's theory (1953, 1972, 1990) and based on research with Caucasians was hypothesized and examined. The rationale was that finding a good fit of the model that also accounted for a significant proportion of the variance would support the adequacy of Super's theory in explaining the career maturity of African-American students as well.The co-determinants of career maturity in the model were sex, educational level, and socioeconomic status (SES) as exogenous variables, and causality and work salience as endogenous variables. Causality and work salience were depicted as latent variables mediating the effects of the demographic variables on career maturity. The model was tested on a sample of 288 African-American students from freshman to doctoral levels. Additional hypotheses investigated which variables in the model were the best predictors of career maturity, sex differences in commitment to the work-role and in career maturity, and the relationship between SES and career maturity.Structural equation modeling using the EQS software program (Bentler, 1989) indicated that, while a good fit of the hypothesized model was obtained, only 12% of the variance in career maturity was explained by the variables in the model. The results suggested that Super's theory may not be wholly adequate in explaining the career maturity of African-American university students. Only commitment to work and educational level were found to be significant predictors of career maturity. Female students were found to be more committed to the work-role and to be more career mature than male students. In general, African-American students exhibited higher participation, commitment, and value expectations in the role of home and family than for the work-role. No significant relationship between SES strata and career maturity was found. Implications for theory, research, and practice were delineated and variables that may be more salient for African-American students' career maturity were also identified. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

Research demonstrates correlations between the sensing-intuitive dimension of psychological type as interpreted by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) (Myers 1985) and science-related career choices. Alarming decreases in science-related career interests prompted this study which employed psychological type theory to investigate relationships between teaching strategies preferences of Indiana high school biology teachers and science-related attitudes of their academically-talented students. The purpose was to learn if good biology teachers instill positive attitudes within the context of the sensing-intuitive dimension by adapting teaching strategies to match the psychological type composition of their classes and therefore inspire students to pursue science-related careers. Teacher and student psychological type was determined by the MBTI. Teaching style preferences of 20 exemplary teachers and 16 randomly-selected teachers related to their 722 academically-talented students were explored by the Biology Teaching Strategies Inventory developed by the researcher. This instrument contained 40 forced-choice items with paired sensing and intuitive activities written to reflect sound biological conceptual themes from BSCS recommendations. An ANOVA determined that neither teacher group appeared to be adapting teaching strategies. Both teacher groups preferred teaching strategies corresponding to their own psychological type, sensing or intuitive, even when they were to select strategies to use with their specific classes.Science-related attitudes of 338 academically-talented students of 10 exemplary and 16 randomly-selected teachers were examined by seven scales of the Test of Science-related Attitudes (TOSRA) (Barry Fraser 1981). A covariant analysis of student science-related attitudes coupled with student variables of Psychological type (sensing and intuitive), career choice, gender, and socio-economic level indicated statistically significant differences in attitude scores of students of both teacher groups: females of exemplary teachers scored almost as high as males of both teacher groups on enjoyment of science learning and science leisure interests, sensing males of higher socio-economic levels had very low attitudes on adoption of scientific attitudes, females of both teacher groups had more positive attitudes than males on normality of scientists, students of exemplary teachers choosing biology-related careers had lower scores than students with similar career choices of randomly-selected teachers. Intuitive students had more positive attitudes than sensing students on all TOSRA scales. / Department of Biology

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 1996. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 91-107). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (M. Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 158-167).